Getting Started

This Getting Started manual is for users who use EnSight to do their post-processing. However, if you do not have EnSight, this document can still provide guidance and information about Ansys Dynamic Reporting' capabilities.

This guide focuses on interactive operations. Moving the analysis to batch and scripting will be covered in an intermediate-level Getting Started manual.

What is Ansys Dynamic Reporting?

Ansys Dynamic Reporting provides centralized data searching and analysis in the context of beautiful web-based reports. In one place, Ansys Dynamic Reporting aggregates and analyzes data across many datasets for deeper understanding. Ansys Dynamic Reporting provides engineering knowledge discovery for your entire organization.

In a nutshell, Ansys Dynamic Reporting is a framework that allows engineers to store their data coming from multiple sources, keep it organized, and create reports that automatically update when the data changes. While Ansys Dynamic Reporting is designed to work in concert with EnSight, the data that is stored can come from potentially anywhere.

Ansys Dynamic Reporting' framework is based upon a database for data storage and a service that analyzes the data and generates reports.

What is a database?

A database is simply an organized collection of data. When you push data into Ansys Dynamic Reporting, it is stored in the database along with information about where the data comes from and how it relates to other data. This allows you to store the data there and access it in an efficient way through database queries. The database is like a black box for the user: you place the data there and get it out from there when you need it. The data is stored in an organized, efficient way, but the details and optimization are handled directly by Ansys Dynamic Reporting.

Local vs. network server

Once your data is stored in the database, you need a way to visualize it. To do so, you will need to start a server, a program that interfaces with the database. There are two types of servers in Ansys Dynamic Reporting: local and network server. A local server is one that is accessible only from the machine it runs on, generally your local desktop. A network server is one that can be accessed by any user on the same network as the machine it runs on. So, if you are working on your data on a single machine and don't need to share your reports, a local server is all you need. If you are working with other engineers, or want to be able to show your reports to other people on the same network, then you will want to start a network server.